It’s a debate that will never end, no doubt, it can’t end, how could it with so many players, characters and club legends having passed through the doors of Old Trafford leaving families, friends and foes alike idolising or begrudging the talents they’ve witnessed?

Definitely a subject heavily swung by the year you’re born in and/or the era you grew up in, choosing your favourite players for each position based on popularity rather than ability stroke success, is a challenge. Many factors go into making a ‘Fans Favourite’ from scoring winners to simply signing for United! There’s been a lot more than eleven over the years so here’s my attempt at producing a ‘Fans Favourite XI’ from the players I’ve seen personally grace the Old Trafford pitch.

Since July this year, RedRants has been running a series of articles attempting to decipher who’s been the greatest ever player in Manchester United’s illustrious history in each and every position. Many of RedRants own community got involved and so too did enthusiastic guest writers, I’m grateful to them all, Thank You.

Some positions in our XI are filled with the obvious, others are not so cut and dried. One thing is for sure though, the debates will rage on and there’s absolutely no definitive answer because Manchester United have fielded more than one fantastically gifted performer in every position.

This final article amalgamates all the articles into one; to produce RedRants’ Manchester United: ‘All-Time Best XI’. The important question is…..How closely does it mirror yours?

When we are faced with writing a “best of” list, we always tend to mention things that are fresher in our memory, which is why having to write about United’s best 10 left midfielders ever has proved a lot trickier than I had initially thought. This is largely due to the fact that, in 24 years, I’ve only seen one (arguably two) player dominating that area of the pitch. United are a club built on attacking flair and wonderful wingers have put opponents to the sword over the years but the number 7 shirt has always had a different aura compared to number 11. Or so, I thought…

Throughout the history of Manchester United Football Club, we have been blessed with great fullbacks on both sides of the pitch. While we have enjoyed watching numerous players in the right back berth, the selection of Gary Neville was hardly a surprise. The left-fullback position, however, is a much more difficult decision. The top ten candidates have together made nearly 3,500 collective appearances for the Reds, a clear indication of the stability we have had in that role over the years.

When I was offered the chance to write about United’s best ever centre-backs, as part of a Best XI feature, I jumped with excitement at the opportunity, without realizing that I was facing two huge tasks. The first is that compiling a list (no matter the subject) is never easy and always likely to leave somebody disappointed or with enough ammunition to argue the choices that have been made. The second, and more practical, is that for a club such as United, whose tradition has largely been built on an attacking approach, with all the flair and panache of midfielders, wingers and strikers, it’s easy to forget how blessed the team has been over the years, with some great centre-backs gracing Old Trafford’s turf. This is a list of (arguably) United’s best 10 centre-backs: some might seem obvious choices, some might not, some might even seem totally unjustified and spark a debate, but isn’t this the point of writing a list?

I must say that when I was asked if I would like to write an article whereby I get to select Manchester United’s top ten all time right sided midfielders, I jumped at the opportunity with great pleasure and enthusiasm. As a historically powerful juggernaut United have made it easy to pick top tens for all positions. The club goes back a long time but it also has such a rich and successful history that it’s been blessed with incredibly talented players who have plied their trade at Old Trafford. Nowhere is that more obvious than the position of Right Midfielder/Right Wing. The list of greatness to have occupied that part of the field is simply so awe inspiring one would have to dig deep to find another club in world football that can match or beat this top ten list for class and skill.

Well I hope everyone enjoyed my first foray at top tens with my list of United’s all time best center forwards. Now I have been granted the privilege of offering you my take at the top ten strikers to have played for our illustrious Red Devils. Let me start by saying that there is a difference in my mind between center forward and striker. CF’s play deeper and also imitate midfielders in an attacking way. Usually they are better passers, have greater patience and vision and are just smarter footballers all round. That is not to say strikers are not smart, they are, but CF’s for me just have more versatility, a larger skill set and a little more genius in their overall make-up.

This summer Manchester United faced a challenge in the transfer market that had similar connotations to 1999 when the great Dane Peter Schmeichel announced he would be leaving for pastures new. Back then, it was felt that the decision on his replacement was made in a rather hasty fashion with the unpredictable Australian Mark Bosnich being recruited from Aston Villa on a free transfer. Whilst it cannot be denied that he had talent, Bosnich failed to win over the Old Trafford faithful after a series of mistakes and poor quality distribution. It is often forgotten that this was the Australian’s second crack at United following a brief three game stint between the years of 1989-92. Second time around he made only 35 appearances before being replaced by Fabien Barthez in 2000.